Bible Strands
Mark 2:18
Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were often fasting. So people came to Jesus and asked, “Why don’t Your disciples fast like John’s disciples and those of the Pharisees?”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Unnamed individuals confront Jesus to ask why His followers do not fast like John’s disciples and the Pharisees. This question arises immediately after Jesus declares His mission to call sinners rather than the righteous.
The words — οἱ μαθηταὶ (hoi mathētai) translates literally as "the disciples," identifying the specific group Jesus is defending. ἦσαν (ēsan) means "were," establishing the continuous, habitual practice of fasting by John’s followers and the Pharisees.
The thread — This confrontation over fasting practices appears in parallel accounts in Matthew 9:14 and is echoed in Luke’s description of Pharisaic devotion in Luke 18:12. The theme of fasting as a religious discipline is also addressed in Matthew 6:18 regarding its proper posture before God.
Why it lands — The verse requires a reader to examine the contrast between external religious routines and the presence of Christ. It demands a direct evaluation of whether spiritual disciplines are maintained for tradition or in response to who Jesus is.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
And the disciples of John and of the Pharisees used to fast: and they come and say unto him, Why do the disciples of John and of the Pharisees fast, but thy disciples fast not?
Cross-references
- Matthew 6:18 so that your fasting will not be obvious to men, but only to your Father, who is unseen. And your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
- Matthew 9:14 Then John’s disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Why is it that we and the Pharisees fast so often, but Your disciples do not fast?”
- Luke 18:12 I fast twice a week and pay tithes of all that I acquire.’
- Matthew 6:16 When you fast, do not be somber like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they already have their full reward.
- Luke 5:33 Then they said to Him, “John’s disciples and those of the Pharisees frequently fast and pray, but Yours keep on eating and drinking.”
- Matthew 23:5 All their deeds are done for men to see. They broaden their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels.
- Romans 10:3 Because they were ignorant of God’s righteousness and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness.